NC State Begins Brutal Stretch At No. 5 Duke

Updated: Thu 9:00 AM, Feb 16, 2012

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- After climbing near the top of the Atlantic Coast Conference standings, North Carolina State wants to prove it can stay there.

That won't be easy with games ahead against all three that share the league lead.

The Wolfpack (18-7, 7-3) begins a challenging stretch of three games in six days Thursday night at No. 5 Duke. They enter one game behind the Blue Devils (21-4, 8-2), No. 8 North Carolina and No. 20 Florida State.

You can catch the NC State/Duke game tonight at 9pm on WITN 7.1 (NBC).

The Wolfpack play host to the Seminoles on Saturday and the Tar Heels next Tuesday.

Picking up a win or two in that stretch certainly would enhance N.C. State's NCAA tournament resume, but coach Mark Gottfried said Wednesday that his team can't afford to think about that yet.

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